


The Monster Under His Bed

by FallingFlowers



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: AU, Angst, Arthur is afraid in the beginning, Boys Kissing, Canon Compliant, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Fluff, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Mentions of Sexual Intercourse, Modern Era, Reincarnation AU, Slow Burn, Yes Merlin is the monster, flangst, its literally just a fluff ball this thing with some angst, kinda slow build?? not really, this isn’t creepy or scary at all I promise
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-03-21
Updated: 2018-03-21
Packaged: 2019-04-06 05:44:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,591
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14050185
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FallingFlowers/pseuds/FallingFlowers
Summary: Since he was a child, there’s always been something lurking under Arthur’s bed.





	The Monster Under His Bed

**Author's Note:**

> someone needs to yell at me to finish chapter three of Consorting ok because otherwise it’s just gonna be me writing oneshots like this forever and i’ll never finish it

Arthur had always known there was something under his bed, ever since he was a young boy. At first, he'd been afraid, hearing stories of monsters as a child, frequently telling his parents, who always assured him there was never anything there. Whenever they had checked, there never was anything there, but at night; at night Arthur knew something always lurked beneath his bed frame.

As he grew, it had never truly made itself known, but in the back of his mind he always knew it was there. He never brought friends home because of it, afraid it would scare them away once it turned dark. His teenage years were filled with anxiety because of it, knowing it was there, but unable to do anything about it. Going to bed and shutting the lights left him in complete darkness, and it would make his heart beat harder in his chest. Somehow, he would find something to think about that killed him to sleep every night, but he had to do that _every single night._

It was no wonder he continued to be afraid after he moved out. An apartment in the city, after finishing university and getting a stable job under his father at their family's company. In the back of his mind, he'd wished that moving out would free him from the agony he'd gone through for his entire life, but alas, he was wrong. The creature still lived beneath his bed and there was nothing he could do about it. He feared he would be stuck with it for the rest of his life, unable to find a relationship that would require to move in with his lover. It would only follow him, and then when his lover would find out, they would kick him out and break up with him.

It may have been an irrational thought, but the fact still reigned that no one had ever believed him when he told them. He stopped after he'd turned sixteen, knowing that he would come off as mentally ill if he said anything to anyone else. So he kept his fears inside, letting his anxiety about going to sleep at night linger as he continued to age.

Arthur was twenty-three when it first made itself known. It wasn't a large affair, possibly something he may not have even noticed if he hadn't paid attention. That morning, he'd had to leave for work in a rush, leaving his bed undone and an unfinished cup of coffee on the kitchen counter. He was usually very clean, making his bed as soon as he got out of it, and doing the dishes before he left.

When he came home, his bed was made and the coffee mug was washed, lying on the drying rack as if he'd left it there himself.

All it did was make him more anxious, because now he knew that it wasn't confined under his bed as he had first thought. It made him more afraid to sleep in his bed than ever before, because what if it wanted something from him? Why was it torturing him like this, anyway? Did it only want to see him go insane? That night, he watched reruns of _Friends_ that were always on at night, trying to convince himself to get up and go to sleep in bed, even if he knew he wouldn't.

He fell asleep on the couch, the voices of the characters still on in the background.

When he woke up at three in the morning, the tv was off and there was a blanket draped over top of him. Somehow, he avoided thinking about how it happened, dragging himself to his room and slowly as he could, before stripping off his shirt and trousers and climbing into his bed. It was already warm.

~•~

Whatever was hiding under his bed had quieted for a few months. Arthur went about his days as he normally did, still falling asleep with more anxiety than he should have had, but he thought everything was fine, or at least, as fine as it could be.

And then he tried to bring someone home.

Her name was Gwen, and they'd been seeing each other for a few weeks. Arthur had been over to her house a few times, but lately she had been bugging him about seeing his place. He'd complied, knowing he wouldn't lose in an argument with her and also that he wouldn't have a valid excuse if he tried to say no.

So he went home that evening and made dinner, set his small dining table for two, and sat on the sofa, waiting for her to arrive. He hoped and prayed that nothing would go wrong, because he liked Gwen a lot and didn't want to ruin that. If his pet monster showed its face, he wouldn't be able to fix his relationship and everything he'd worked for would fall apart. All he wanted was to find love, was that supposed to be so hard?

When there was a knock on the door, Arthur opened it, accepting a smile and a kiss on the cheek from Gwen. He kept his nerves down by making conversation and laughing frequently, and her presence had calmed him down. It had been so long since he'd shared his private space with anyone, and no one had ever stepped into his apartment before. After they'd finished dinner, they sat on the sofa and turned on the tv, but it was quickly forgotten when Gwen started kissing him. It made him anxious. They'd had sex before, of course they had, but he'd never had sexual with anyone _in his own home._ He didn't even want to think about going into his room and having sex _on his bed_.

But there was nothing he could say to prevent it. So he let Gwen lead them, kissing him like there was no tomorrow, before pulling him up from the couch and pulling him toward the hallway that led to his room. His heart beat frantically, because he had to stop this, _he had to stop this._ If anything happened to Gwen he would hold himself accountable, and he didn't want _anything_ to happen to her. So he detached himself from her lips, guarding the door to his room with his back to it, and found her giving him a confused look.

"Arthur, _what are you doing?_ " She raised an eyebrow in question, and Arthur's chest heaved up and down as he tried to catch his breath to explain it to her.

"I... We... We can't have sex tonight." He said, knowing it was a horrible way to breach the conversation.

"Arthur, if you have a stash of porn in your room, you know I won't care, right?" He didn't actually have a stash, but that was beside the point.

"It's not that."

"Then... What is it?" He didn't say a word. "You can tell me, Arthur." She looked concerned for him, as if she knew it was a serious matter.

"There's... a monster... living under my bed." Immediately, her concerned look turned into one of annoyance. She narrowed her eyes at him before speaking.

"Arthur, if you didn't want to have sex with me you could have just said so." She said, turning on a heel and starting to walk away, but Arthur followed and grabbed her shoulders, turning her around.

"I'm telling the truth, I swear!" He cried, trying to get her to understand. _Why didn't anyone ever understand?_

"You're not a five-year-old, Arthur. You're twenty-four, why don't you act like it?! There is _nothing_ under your bed, and if this is some sick way of getting me to break up with you because you don't want to do it yourself, fine. _It's over, Arthur."_ But before she could walk away, he grabbed her arm and made her look at him. His eyes were red-rimmed, and he wanted her to understand to badly.

So she pushed his arm away and marched into his bedroom, kneeling down on the ground and looking under his bed. She found nothing.

After she left, Arthur sat on his bedroom floor and cried, her voice replaying in his head.

_We're through._

When he slipped into his bed that night, he trembled, wishing for some way to correct his awful life. A few seconds before he drifted to sleep, there was a warm hand petting his hair, and a kiss pressed to his forehead. He vaguely heard two words, like wisps of wind, before sleep claimed him.

_I'm sorry._

~•~

The monster began to become a regularity in his life. It would constantly pick his clothes off the floor where he'd left them, and do his laundry when he wasn't around. At night, Arthur would always feel a presence beside him in bed, only ever when he was about to fall asleep. Its hand would always run through his hair, strangely human, like a caress from a lover. And then, before he would fall unconscious, a pair of lips on his forehead. He could never wake when this happened because he would be too close to sleep, though he wished he could open his eyes and see exactly what his monster looked like.

The anxiety he used to have minimized until it no longer existed. He would go to sleep after a long day at work without stress, knowing his monster would be there to lull him to sleep, comfort him until he fell into the depths of it. When he woke, it would be to a good night's rest and a smile on his face.

One night, he picked up his courage enough to speak to it. He was sat in bed, prepared to go to sleep, but he wanted to know something.

"Could you... tell me your name?" And though there was no immediate response, Arthur knew he'd been heard. So, he lied down with his head on the pillow and shut his eyes, wanting to know the answer as soon as he possibly could. And sure enough, it was whispered into his ear just when he thought it would be.

_Merlin._

~•~

The next week, Arthur wanted to voice another question of his. He had no idea how Merlin would take it, knowing their interactions were based around never seeing the other, but Arthur wanted— _oh, how he wanted_ —to see him.

"Merlin... I want to see you. Would you please let me?" And when he lied down in bed and shut his eyes, Merlin arrived earlier than he usually did. Before Arthur could open his eyes, however, a warm hand covered them, blocking him from seeing anything but darkness. The voice that spoke was deep and comforting, and Arthur felt tingles fun down his spine when he heard it in a way that wasn't a whisper in the night.

 _"Are you sure?"_ Merlin asked.

_"Yes."_

_"Not today. Soon, I promise."_ Arthur hoped time would go by quickly until he finally got to see Merlin's face. He had no doubt his "monster" was some sort of human entity, from his hands and his voice. _"Go to sleep, Arthur."_

The sound of Merlin saying his name made Arthur happier than it should have.

~•~

Merlin had disappeared. His presence had disappeared in Arthur's bedroom entirely, and when Arthur called for him, there was never any answer. The comforting strokes through his hair and soft kisses pressed to his forehead had disappeared entirely, as if they had never been there in the first place. He missed them deeply, and wished Merlin would come back. It had been weeks, _weeks_. Arthur could no longer sleep well and there would constantly be bags under his eyes. He yelled at his employees and avoided contact with his friends. All he wanted was for Merlin to come back; why hadn't he?

Arthur had grown so attached to the lovely presence that lived in his home. He wanted to see Merlin so he mirror all the actions that had been done to him, to run a comforting hand through his hair and whisper sweet words, before pressing a soft kiss on his forehead. It kept him up at night frequently, hoping Merlin would come and they would reunite and Arthur could be happy again. Usually, he would fall asleep with his wishes still in mind.

One night, about a month after Merlin's disappearance, Arthur came home after a bad day at work and dropped his briefcase on the sofa angrily. He loosened his tie before untying it and taking off his shirt along with it. His trousers followed, being thrown onto a pile on the floor that had grown in the past few weeks. He didn't feel like doing anything, so his apartment had grown dirty and unkempt after Merlin had left.

Arthur lied down on his bed, lying on his side and pulling his knees up to his chest, as angry and sad tears ran down his face. He let out a sob, finally expressing his emotions after always keeping them locked up for so long. His father expected more from him, he'd become estranged from his friends, and the one thing that made him happy had left him. What was he doing wrong? He'd tried his hardest since _birth_ to be as happy and successful in life as he possibly could, but he wasn't doing it right. How was he supposed to deal with anything when he couldn't even hold himself together?

He didn't stop crying until a warm body climbed into bed with him, wrapping him in its arms and pressing a nose into his hair. Arthur buried his face in a strong chest, calming down at the sounds of a soothing and familiar voice he'd so very dearly missed, as a hand ran up and down his back. Merlin hushed him and promised him everything was going to be alright, and Arthur believed him.

After he had finished sobbing, Arthur pulled away from Merlin's chest, desiring to see that face he'd wanted to see for so long. Merlin had dark hair, and was pale with defined cheekbones and smooth skin. The sight of him broke something in Arthur, like a dam. Everything flooded into his mind and he couldn't stop it, nor did he want to. It had been _so long_. He raised a hand and ran his thumb over Merlin's cheek, smiling when Merlin put his own hand over Arthur's.

"I missed you." Arthur sniffled, and an ache at the sight of Merlin in front of him ran through his heart. His statement didn't even begin to express exactly how much he cared for Merlin, how much he desired.

"And I, you." Merlin said, leaning in closer to Arthur so their faces were barely inches apart. "May I kiss you?" Arthur didn't say anything, only nodded and shut his eyes, preparing himself for what he had wanted for so long. Merlin pressed his lips to Arthur's pulling him closer by the waist, until their bodies were aligned and their legs interlocked. He rolled them over so he was on top, and licked into Arthur's mouth deeply, showing exactly how he felt for Arthur, and Arthur returning it the same.

Later, they fell next to each other in bed, still breathing heavily after displaying how they felt about one another the best they could. Arthur knew he loved Merlin, that he would never be able to stop loving him. He would love him until the end of their days, and would never leave him again.

**Author's Note:**

> Hope you liked it!! 
> 
> Comments and Kudos are welcomed!! <3


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